Spotted Hyena: An Elusive Predator spotted at Maasai Mara, Kenya

For some reason, I have always wanted to watch the Hyena in the wild. In my mind space, the Hyena occupies a much higher ranking than the usual predators – lion, leopard, cheetah, leopard, tiger, etc. May be, it is because I have always been fascinated by their hunting technique that is portrayed on TV (Nat Geo, Discovery, Animal Planet, etc.).


But, what I didn’t really know was that the Hyenas are more elusive than most of the big cats. And, in 14 game drives in Kenya, I saw the Hyena only once and that too in the wee hours of the morning.


The Hyena that I saw was a Spotted Hyena on the eastern side of the Maasai Mara Game Reserve as he crossed the jeep track. And even while crossing the jeep track, he was very shy of the vehicles. I hope this shyness ensures that their population remains healthy and they remain happy in the wild.